What it's like to live in Somerton
Somerton is a small city in Arizona with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, crime rates well below the national average, and commutes that run shorter than most cities. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Somerton deals with county unemployment above the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, college degree attainment below the national average, and larger class sizes than the national average.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Low crime rates
- Short commutes
- Growing population
The not so good
- Above-average unemployment in the county
- Air quality concerns
- Low college degree attainment
- High student-teacher ratio
- Extreme summer heat
- Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options
How Somerton compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Somerton
Based on Somerton's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,792
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $35,840 a year
- 38% of Somerton renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$46,520
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $23,260
- Homes cost 3.1× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 37% below US
$896/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $896 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $232,600. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $232,600 · 38% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
14.0% county unemployment
Unemployment in Yuma County is 14.0%, well above the national average of 4.3%. Moving with a job already lined up matters more here. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Yuma County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 50% below US
183 violent crimes per 100k
Pretty safe, all things considered. Violent crime sits below the national average, nothing alarming, just ordinary city-life awareness.
Property crime 530/100k · Somerton Police Department · 2024 data
Getting around▼ 13% below US
23 min average commute
Commutes are reasonable, averaging 22.5 minutes. Nothing heroic, and there's still time left over for a life after work. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 6% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers run seriously hot, with average highs pushing 105°F, and winters are mild, with lows rarely dropping below 48°F. It's a dry climate with limited rainfall.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Education & workforce▼ 66% below US
12% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
9 public schools inside the boundary
There are 9 public schools inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 18:1, slightly above the national average of 16:1.
Bottom line
Somerton's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are county unemployment above the national average and air quality that falls short of national benchmarks. A year of median rent ($896/mo) equals 15% of the median household income here, less than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget and anyone prioritizing low crime. It may be a harder fit for anyone moving without a job lined up and people who struggle with heat.
Other places near Somerton
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